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History of Hulstria and Gao-Soto
This page currently relates to the modern era of History from the discovery of Dovani onwards. It is about the History of the Nation of Greater Hulstria starting at the discover of the Continent of Dovani. Christopher Dove In the year 1492, Luthori Explorer Christopher Dove set out from the Holy Luthori Empire in search on a continent rumored to exist at the end of the world. With the blessing of the Holy Luthori Emperor, Dove set out with an entire navy fleet to find this land and claim it in the name of the Emperor. Nearly 4 months after leaving port in the HLE, Dove's flagship spotted a strip of land on the horizon. They continued to sail toward it for 2 days before finally arriving on the coastline of eastern Donvani. This land was barren an dissapointing to Dove so he continue to sail south around the continent and then sailed North up the Western Coast until he found what appeared to be fertile land. On July 7th, 1493, nearly 12 months after seeing the last port of the old world, Christopher Dove stuck a Luthori Flag a beach of the continent that would later become known as Dovani, named for him, claiming it for the Holy Luthori Empire. He would return four times to Dovani, each time finding a faster route there. On his final voyage to the continent he was accompanied by a group of colonists from the Holy Luthori Empire. He was tasked by the Emperor with establishing the first Luthori settlement on the continent. The settlement was built near the spot where he first landed, and was named Ehrigia, it would become the capital of New Luthori. Dove would die 3 years after the colony's founding while serving as Governor-General of New Luthori. He was succeeded by a man named Auric Strauss, who's family would become intertwined with Hulstrian history. Dove's body was buried originally in a small cemetary in Ehrigia, however 10 years late it was moved to the Dove Vault, a massive tomb in the middle of Ehrigia that has since become a national monument. Colonization By the year, 1560, Luthori claims encompassed all of modern day Greater Hulstria. They claims were divided up into 10 colonies: Hilgar Hilgar was by far the largest of the Luthori colonies in the new world. Named for a mythical tree that was believed to grow in the colony, Hilgar became an important source of hard woods for Luthori. Of all the colonies it had by far the largest number of native Gishotoi living in it. This often lead to violence between the Gishotoi and Luthori colonists. The Colonist are said to have wiped out thousands of Gao Showa because of the Luthori use of gun power and the burning of any and all Gao Showa settlements. A Peace was finally established after nearly 150 years, ending the fighting in the year 1654. From there an uneasy peace was established, with the Gishotoihold up in the east, and the Luthori fortifying their position in the west. The Hulstrian fortress of Kaiserburg was built and expanded largely during this period. Kaiserburg would serve as the Hilgarian capital up into the present day. Hulstria Of all the colonies New Luthori and Marchau were the commercial and agricultural centres of the colonies, respectively. However a small city in the colony of Hulstria rapidly grew to prominence. The city of Kien had originally been founded by Lutherans fleeing the religious intolerance in The Holy Luthori Empire. In fact the vast majority of colonists who came to the Hulstrian Colonies were Lutherans fleeing Luthori. They brought with them their knowledge of everything from art to shipbuilding. Kien was constructed in a way very reminiscent of the old world capitals. Large Cathedrals, Towering Castles, a Grand Palace, and a massive wall known as the Fake Ridge, as it streches on from several kilometers. A prominent Luthori family, the Labsburgs, who had immigrated to Kien from Liore, were able to come to such a position of power in Hulstria that the Governer-Generalship of Hulstria passed down hereditarily through their family. It was under the Labsburgs, that Hulstria, and specifically Kien, gained a good deal of influence in colonial affairs, eventually absorbing part of the neighboring colony of New Yodukan. Kuratha Marchau Mitrania The region east of the Schnee-Berge Mountains was first visited by Luthori colonists towards the close of the 15th century. At that time it was somewhat thinly peopled. The majority of the inhabitants appear to have been unskilled farmers of the Gishotoi, barely resembling their sophisticated forefathers. Modern scholars believe that the strain of the wars with the Luthori Empire had drained the resources of the Gishotoi in the region. Once the territories were conquered by the Luthori, colonists poured into the rich farmlands of Mitrania. The colonists built the city of Graaffsberg as the administrative centre of the new colony. In 1578 farmers of Duntrekker, Luthori Catholic, and Episcopalian Kalistani descent seeking pasture for their flocks settled in the country. They were followed in 1593 by the first settlers of the Southern Expansion. These emigrants left Hultria, New Liore, New Luthori, and the other northern and coastal colonies for various reason, but were primarily animated by the desire to escape from Luthori sovereignty. The leader of the first large party of emigrants was Pieter Heerden, who concluded an agreement with Takehiko, the chief noble of the local Gishotoi, ceding to the farmers the country between the Schnee-Berge Mountains and the Grote Blauwe Rivier. The region continued to prosper, at the expense of the native Gishotoi. By the 1620's it is estimated that only 1/3 of the original number of Gishotoi remained in Mitrania. New Liore New Luthori New Yodukan Straussia Vorm For the Dorvish classical composer, see Vorm The Rise of Hulstria 1560 - 1635 The Great Rebellion 1635 - 1650 The Empire of Hulstria (1650 - 2117) Beginnings Following the The Great Rebellion, Hulstria came under the rule of Franz VI (r.1650-1676), who was given the Crown after the establishment of the Hulstrian Monarchy by the Imperial Diet in 1650; his coronation also made the Lutheran House of Rothingren the ruling imperial dynasty and Hulstria would be ruled by the Rothingrens for the next 106 years until their unification with the House of Traugott in 1735. In the 1650s and the 1660s, the Rothingrens began to accumulate other provinces and territory in the vicinity of Hulstria, more notably in eastern Dovani. These territories, together, became known as the Eastern Territories overtime, although they were sometimes all together simply reffered to as "the colonies". Kaiser Franz I lead the foundation of this colonial empire of Hulstria, starting new campaigns to capture new lands; Franz I was successful in receiving a portion of land west of the Sea of Corina and land south of Hilgar, including some territory in the south-west of Corina. Following these latest acquisitions, new trade routes for Hulstrian merchants were mapped and additional markets were formed, providing a wave of economic prosperity for many within the country. Franz I himself advocated new economic initiatives to the Imperial Diet and encouraged the growth of the Hulstrian shipping industry; the Kaiser furthermore made attempts to construct new trade relations with Luthori, then under Charles I (r.1659-1683), in hopes of easing leftover tensions from the rebellion. Such efforts were meet kindly by Charles and the two nations engaged in regular trading activity. Franz did face some criticism from the Imperial Diet and others who were involved in the rebellion but later was praised for his ability to lend his hand of friendship to a former foe. The Rothingrens pushed through the groundwork of Hulstrian architecture quickly following the birth of Hulstria; several historically important buildings such as the Fliederbrunn Palace, the Hulstrian National Cathedral, and the Korlburg Palace were constructed under Franz's reign. The Baroque styles of the pieces of infrastructure marked Hulstrian power and unity; Sigismund von Vorm, the architect behind Fliederbrunn, even had a city named after him in Kuratha. Not only were construction projects made for the royals, new structures were put into place for the citizenry. Franz personally commissioned the assembly a vast system of libraries in Kien and around Hulstria. The first years of the new Hulstrian Monarchy were that of skepticism, great curiosity, and new heights; Hulstria did eventually emerge as the new power within the Dovani region and Franz I's leadership granted legitimacy to the Monarch, leaving his successors with plenty of affluence to command the country. On November 2nd, 1676, Franz I died at the age of 76 from natural causes; Franz's son, Crown Prince Rudolph, assumed the throne as Rudolph I. Rudolph I & Maximilian I Rudolph I (r.1676-1681) was the first Emperor of Hulstria to go through the process of succession and his coronation was considered grand for his day; while his coronation may have been large and spectacle, Rudolph was actually not an energetic person and lead a very conventional lifestyle. Rudolph was still a well-loved Emperor and this fact at times made him puzzled due to his ordinary personality. Rudolph did provide leadership in continuing many of his father's initiatives and focused his efforts on creating a strong Hulstrian navy, commissioning decorated naval soldiers at leadership positions and working with the Imperial Diet on funding for new ship creations. Rudolph I encouraged skill artisans in all fields however in Hulstria and had the Rothingrens become patronages of educational institutions, including the first higher educational schools in Hulstria. Rudolph was very concerned about education and throughout his reign promoted intelligent thought among society; people close to Rudolph were noted to have said about the Emperor that he was interested in building an educated population that would pass down traits and traditions to future generations. The Emperor also pushed through measures to increase the flexibility of the military in the Hulstrian Empire by reorganizing them in a more effective chain of command and allowed territories to form their own representative councils to deal with local issues, however such governing were still supervised by the Imperial Diet and the Monarch. Rudolph I on top of this pushed for greater centralization in the governemnt and was able to accomplish this goal. The Empire of Hulstria though under Rudolph did not expand and by 1680 remained where it was at after death of Franz. After six years of at the throne as the Emperor of Hulstria, Rudolph died in 1681 Kien; his son Maxmilian, who was more eccentric and lively, inherited the throne as Maximilian I. Maximilian I (r.1681-1732) when he was Crown Prince had attended prestigious schooling and was brought it fairly in the private eye; this fact however did not affect his personality, which people during the day who knew him thought he was "full of life" and adventruous. These traits, most likely gained from his mother, were transported to how he ruled the Hulstrian Monarch and Empire. In private conversations and discovered notes and writings of Maximilian I told that he had great visions for the future and expansion of the Rothingrens and the Empire. One of his many visions was to create a vast infrastructure system within Hulstria that he hoped "would be the envy of the continent"; in 1682 Maximilian I commissioned and was able to order new revitalizations of roads within the country with unanimous approval of the Imperial Diet. The regions of Budenlar, Hulstria, and Mitrania were the first areas to be given improved roads; large cities given the most improvement but Maxilimian also made sure efficient roads were avaliable to everyone. Construction and the connection of roads to urban cities to the farming communities in Mitrania increased trade and easy access to goods, mountain valleys and communities were positively received by these new routes in specifically the areas in or around the Barrier Ranges. Hilgar and Kuratha in the course of time also acquired these benefits. Documents and other writings show the architects of these new roads employed ideas from the Selucia Imperium, Luthori, and from their own original concepts to construct the old transportation system of Hulstria. In 1683 Maximilian embarked on new patronages to support and enhance the shipping industry of Hulstria, which when at the time he assumed the throne, were performing at moderate levels however the Emperor was not exactly one who tolerated these moderate levels and envisioned a larger skilled artisan trade in shipping, believed that if the Rothingrens and Hulstria as a whole would become the dominant military and economic power on the continent, a strong navy was needed to fulfill these goals. Despite his father's appointment of decorated soldiers to leadership positions in the navy, this did not automatically increase the fleet numbers of Hulstria. Maximilian as he did with infrastructure became a patron of several ship building organizations and got the legislature to pass shipping-friendly legislation; the Emperor also commissioned the coastal towns of Luthorische Bai and New Liore to become the two primary locations for Hulstrian ship construction and maintenance. Within a decade, thanks to these patronages and encouragement of skilled labor within shipping, the Navy of Hulstria became the dominant force in both Dovani and Terra which the country encompassing a wide range of unique vessels; The new fleet assisted the growth of international trade to Hulstria and exerted sea power along Hulstria's coastline. This vast expansion furthermore created new wealth for those coastal towns and paved the way for new settlements along the coast of Budenlar and Kuratha in the 1690s. This was seen as a major accomplishment in Maximilian's reign and became an extraordinarily loved Monarch following this success. Maximilian did not stop at expanding the power of the Rothingrens and Hulstria and in 1696 created a new military campaign to seek to acquire new lands beyond the existing colonies farther east in the Dovani plains and around the Sea of Corina. Maximilian did not stop at expanding the power of the Rothingrens and Hulstria and in 1696 created a new military campaign to seek to acquire new lands beyond the existing colonies farther east in the Dovani plains and around the Sea of Corina. Maximilian was noted to have been fond of military strategy and tactics and was involved regularly in the planning of the battle plans for the new acquirements; the Emperor’s insight however did not prevent the coming events to face the Hulstra army. In July 1697, Hulstran army soldiers took a small piece of land just off the edge of the north-eastern Corina coastline and claimed it for the Emperor, however though they were ambushed by local barbarians and aggressive nomad hordes that were already known to cause terror within the region; the army was at first taken aback, being subject to moderate casualty though were successfully able to defend themselves and their new claims. After hearing the news, Maximilian decided not to expand further into the territories for the time being and focused his efforts on suppressing the hordes in the area. In the "War of the Plains", ordered by the Emperor and declared by the legislature was a short conflict between Hulstrian forces and the barbarians hordes in the eastern Dovani plains in response to the attacks on the Corina territory; while the conflict only lasted for a few weeks and it has been noted as being a relatively small conflict, it did result in the elimination of the final remnants of such "horde" groups on the continent in the eastern plains and they were drove out to the Rift Mountains and southern Dovani. The conflict also opened new trade routes and new migration into the colonies due to the new safe envirnment. The victory resulted in a massive surge of popularity and the new found respect lasted with him until the last years of his reign. Henrietta & the War of Hulstrian Succession Maximilian I on his efforts to expand the Hulstrian empire and naval power, did not focus his time creating much of an imperial family and a male heir to the Hulstrian throne; Maximilian was able to only have one child, a daughter named Heinretta, with his wife. The couple had one son however but he died during a miscarriage, thus cementing Heinretta's claim to the throne. The latter however was challenged by other royal families; by the end of Maximilian's tenure, various royal Houses grew uncomfortable with the fact that Henrietta would after Maximilian's death become the new Monarch, believing that only males should be able to assume the throne (though this was eventually found out be a convenient excuse put forward to in reality bash the Rothingrens and Heinretta) and as such started to propose their own members as candidates to take Maximilian's (and subsequently the Rothingrens place) position of power; these opponents also proclaimed that Heinretta was inexperienced and would not properly run the business of the Monarch. Henrietta dismissed these challenges and comments from other families, citing the actual Hulstrian Writ of Succession drafted by her great-grandfather, Franz I, that allowed women to become the Head of State to cash off oppositional claims and also cited the direct bloodline she had with the Emperor, being closet to him, making her the legitimate heir; the Emperor's daughter also had the backing of major Hulstrian Military generals and used that influence to take the throne without further opposition for the time being. When Maximilian I died in 1732, the Crown Princess was coronated in Kien and became Henrietta I of Hulstria (r.1732-1756); the coronation sparked off a conflict between the Rothingrens and the disputing royal families in the "War of Hulstrian Succession" that began 1733. Despite the fact that Henrietta's father, Maximilian I, made efforts to befriend other noble families in Hulstria, such loyalities that existed from these Houses were quickly buried as some began to talk of "bringing up arms" in dethroning Henrietta I and installing a new Monarch to take her place. The Houses of Brandelfurg, Traugott, Moravia, and Oscania positioned themselves in opposition to Henrietta I; however with concerns to the Traugotts, while they were opposed to Henrietta I assuming the throne, they were not as violent or belligerent as their supposed allies yet were one of the leading voices against Henrietta's claim to the throne. The Brandelfurgs, Moravias and the Oscania families on the other hand were simply against the Rothingrens and whatever they did and took advantage of this obstruction by inciting conflict. In the mean time while Henrietta's enemies were gathering, she herself had her own allies; the Strauss, Labsburg, and the Flieders were united in standing with the Rothingrens and believed Henrietta had every right to inheriet the Hulstrian throne, being the closest living person to the former Emperor, Maximilian. Henrietta additionally had support of major Hulstrian generals and used this fact to her advantage later in the war. Modern historians believe that Duke Charles, the Head of the House of Brandelfurg, fired the "first shot" in the War of Hulstrian Succession by leading a small army into northern Mitrania and capturing the north-west corner of the region in the name of the Brandelfurgs and more obviously as a sign of rebellion against Henrietta, now actually putting rhetoric about conflict into reality. While Henrietta and the Hulstrian Imperial Army were suspect of a possible military move by one of the opposition, the soldiers placed in the area could do nothing more than a few garrison and fell back to eastern Budenlar. The Rothingrens, rightfully furious, sprang into action; Henrietta I ordered Hulstrian troops to take back the territory and if found, to execute Duke Charles of Brandelfurg on the basis of treason. A field army under the command of Goerge von Kutowsky was quickly formed and made preparations to re-conquer the Brandelfurg controlled land. In the Battle of River Pass, Kutowsky easily defeated the Brandelfurg encampment, using the terrian, which included a strategic river stream, to attack the opposition. Kutowsky also led a much bigger army and had better equipment, being supplied by the top imperial brass in Kien. Charles however was nowhere to be found in that area and was suspected of leaving the area before the attack; if this was because of early intelligence or pure luck, it is unknown. Henrietta, thinking the unruly opposition was put to an in, declared victory; this was premature. Two weeks following the Kutowsky counter-attack, the Duke of Brandelfurg, led an attack on Rothingren military camps south of the Region of Hulstria with not only his own troops but others from Oscania and Moravia families who also voiced their adverse against Henrietta. This army also attacked two other camps in the area and captured a small town in the process; this surprise campaign, known as the "Neisse Campaign", named after Armin Neisse, a former General in the Imperial Army that quit to join the opposition, rejuvenated the War of Hulstrian Succession, and triggered the Hulstrian Monarchy to once again defend herself. Goerge von Kutowsky, due to his success before in defeating the Brandelfurgs, was again given commanding powers over the Imperial Army. He quickly organized three groups to take back the occupied territory and finally ride out the Brandelfurg. In one group, led by General Anders Wenham, in an attempt to take back a largly fortified camp where slaughtered, dealing a powerful blow to the Monarchy. However, in a group led by Marcel von Raimund, they were successfully able to recapture a small portion of territory from Charles. The Brandelfurgs, looking to retain their territory and to further pursue their quest to overthrow Henrietta I, turned the tide in the succession war in the winter of 1733. It was announced that winter that the Brandelfurgs successfully secured an alliance with the House of Borbone, a powerful noble family from Lourenne who had connections to the military in that nation; in this agreement, the Borbones would supply the Brandelfurgs with military equipment, including soldiers, in return for a piece of any captured land followng the end of the war. Henrietta quickly responded in setting up a defense pact with the Holy Luthori Empire, then under Maximilian II (r.1739-1769); this pact with Luthori would help balance out the rest of the war since now both sides had an ally in the conflict. Following the establishment of these alliances, the War of Hulstrian Succession would not re-ignite into conflict until the spring of 1734 when the Borbones and the Brandelfurg launched a major offensive to conquer the capital of Kien, home to the Hulstrian Monarchy, in the hopes of finally crushing Henrietta I. In what has been called the "Barrier Range Offensive", the Borbone and Brandelfurg might combined with each other to launch a daring invasion of the Region of Hulstria and eventually Kien. The offensive was launched in the spring of 1734, led by the infamous Armin Neisse, who led the "Neisse Campaign" that captured the southern half of the Crownland, and René Étienne, of the Brandelfurg and Borbone family respectively. Suspecting that they would try to take Kien, Henrietta set up defensive camps along the Barrier Mountains and around both major cities and small towns that she thought the opposition would try to take for their own advantage. This defense set up by Henrietta I, including the help from Luthori, helped slow down the Barrier Range Offensive yet did not stop it entirely. Both sides would exchange victories and defeats fpr the remainder of the year until the Battle of Phonix which drastically changed the course of the war. Up until late 1734, Neisse and Étienne were gaining victory in small areas just enough to led their charge towards Kien. Due to defensive positions set up by the Empress early on, the Borbone-Brandelfurg army had to take unique routes which left them in unimportant strategic areas regulary. Up until late 1734 as well, the main objective of the Barrier Range Offensive was to capture Kien, and subsequently taking over the entire nation in one giant sweep; René Étienne realized such a goal was unrealistic and convinced Neisse, who wanted to go straight to Kien, to instead attack cities surrounding Kien in an effort to suffocate the Monarchy into having to retreat. The city of Phonix was chosen as the first target of this new campaign due to it's close location to the capital and easy trade routes which could be used by the opposition military forces; the city also had a small military encampment, leaving it open to an attack. It was not known to the opposition army that Henrietta I had actually placed skilled Imperial Marine regiments within the cities, not just regular foot soldiers. When Neisse and Étienne attacked, they were caught by surprise, thinking they would easily overrun it. On December 19th, 1743, Armin Neisse launched the invasion of Phonix with own his regiment, flanking it from the East while René Étienne led his own regiment of troops from the south of the city. Étienne used artillery and seige weaponry on the defensive positions around the city and to knock down fortified postions while Neisse used his ground army to penetrate other walls and to provide assistance to Étienne. The Imperial Marines stationed at Phonix went into immediate defensive positions and drove back some Neisse's ground forces; to retaliate towards Étienne's artillery, the Imperial Marines fired cannons at their position from Bastions and Embrasures. The fighting went well into the night; eyewitness reports and historical documents say that the sky in Phonix was "strikingly red" and yellow, resembling some colors that of the firebird, the Phoenix. In the early morning hours of December 19th, 1743, Neisse was finally able to gain access inside the city following an intense firefight with a squad of Imperial Marines at the north-east section of Phonix. The victory here allowed Neisse to effectively gain access inside the city and to flank the Imperial Marines stationed in front of the city attacking Étienne's artillery. Marine reinforcements, who had not made it earlier to save the exisiting sqaud during the fight, arrived just as Neisses troops entered and engaged in close-quarter combat, an unusal military tactic during used during that time. Hand-to-hand conflict also ensued between the Imperial Marines and the Neisse army. Meanwhile, inner Phonix was plunged continually by enemy artiellery, leaving many citizens to leave the city; Colonel Bernard Matthias of Hulstria, in charge of the IM regiment south of the city, knew that the city would fall if the enemy artillery was not effectively destroyed, Phonix would likely be lost. Matthias quickly organized calvary unit and led the daring charge to the nearest artillery unit in the hopes of driving back the rest of the seige back to get out of range of the city. Reminiscent of the "Charge of the Hulstrian Lancers" in the Hulstrian Rebellion, Matthias layed his own seige upon Étienne, though not without a price as Colonel Bernard Matthias was killed by an enemy riflemen during the offensive. The calvary would succeed in destroying their designated artilley but were pushed back the city, opposite of their intended plans, as troops from the Moravia family entered the battle. In the north-east section of the city, Neisse was however pushed back himself out of the city. The Imperial Marines now were pinned down in Phonix against the Borbones, the Brandelfurgs, and now the Moravias. When news reached to Henrietta I about this situation, she called upon several major Generals to lead a counter-attack to push back opposition forces; Field Marshall Goerge von Kutowsky was given the task to oversee the counter-attack. Some Generals under the command of Kutoswky, like Volkmar von Strauss, a member of the House of Strauss, Philip Hanspeter, and Henrik Lothar, all had previous affliation with Henretta's father, Maxilimilian I, and were trusted associates of the House of Rothingren. The counter-attack force departed Kien for Phonix on Christmas eve, 1743. On Christmas day, a massive snow storm fell upon the entire country, including Phonix. The Neisse force, now to the north, was unable to advance any further into the city. Neisse's troops, who were mostly from the Borbones, were not experienced in winter warfare, and thus could not fight efficiently. The cold temperatures also affected Étienne's artiellry, which told by some documents actually froze. The Imperial Marines, we who almost on the brink of defeat and losing the city, on the other hand were trained in wintery conditions, giving them the edge over the enemy. The winter's stalling of the Borbone-Brandelfurg-Moravia bought the Marines valueable time as a result. Ferdinand von Lehwaldt, the acting Colonel following the death of Matthias, saw this as an opportunity to attack the enemy in their state of vulnerability, and had Imperial Marines attack small encampments of the Borbone-Brandelfurg-Moravia which proved to be successful. Taking into account the weather, the Imperial Marine's new offensive, and suspecting large reinforcements from the Rothingrens Étienne retreated from the Battle of Phonix though did not inform Neisse nor commanders from the Moravias about his depature, leaving them to their fate with Kutowsky. The counter-attack force eventually arrived at Phonix, after the snow storm settled, engaging with Armin Neisse and Ludwig Jan-Lukas of the Moravias, with Kutowsky and Strauss taking them on respectively. A large battle ensued between the two forces and many deaths were given on both sides. Armin Neisse, during his battle with Goerge von Kutowsky was killed by an artillery shot when he was on his horse, violently throwing him off his horse and threw into a batch of stones; Neisse soon died from internal injuries and severe interal bleeding as a result. The large death toll from Neisse's side and his death resulted in his force to surrender to the Hulstrians; Ludwig Jan-Lukas also surrendered during his battle with Volkmar von Strauss soon after, ending the Battle of Phonix with a large victory for the Rothingrens. Phonix was badly damaged during the seige yet it did not fall to the opposition, saving Kien. Conclusion & the Peace of Flieder News spread throughout Hulstria like wildfire about the victory at Phonix by the Rothingrens and the defeat of the enemy Brandelfrugs and Borbones, ending their Barrier Range Offensive and pushing them back deep into Mitrania. Charles, the Duke of Brandelfrug, attempted to escape Hulstria but was caught by Luthori navymen who were stationed off the coast of Kuratha, aiding in supply efforts to the Rothingrens as a result of their defense pact signed a year prior. The Rothingrens a month after the Battle of Phonix regained the taken land captured by Neisse in southern Hulstria , ending Brandelfurg occupation of that area. René Étienne took refuge in southern Mitrana where he and his army fortified themselves on the border between Hulstria and the Eastern Territories. With the opposition of the Emporess gone, one would assume in respect the war would be over. This thinking was incorrect. There were still other families strongly opposed to Henrietta I sitting on the Hulstrian throne that did not take part in the violent conflict created by the House of Brandelfrug. The House of Traugott and it's head, Balthazar, the Duke of Traugott, was one of these strong voices. To aviod further conflict, the Rothingrens proposed that Balthazar marry Henrietta I and combine the House of Rothingren and the House of Traugott under the condition that the House of Traugott be absorbed into the Rothingren side, thus allowing the Rothingrens to obtain the titles possesed by the Traugotts. Balthazar agreed to these provisions only if he would be able to dualy reign alongside Henrietta; the House of Rothingren agreed. At the time the Rothingrens were discussing peace at home, they were also discussing peace with the Borbones of Lourenne. The Borbones, afraid Henrietta I would declare war on them, and invade, proposed peace with the Rothingrens, ending the hostility between the two Houses and would relinquish their claims to any land originally agreed to with the Duke of Brandelfrug. The Borbones also revealed the exact location of René Étienne as a token of their faith of turning their back to fighting with the Hulstrian Monarchy. A Hulstrian battalion attacked Étienne's encampment and easily defeated them; René Étienne, refusing to be captured, shot himself in his tent. In the spring of 1735, the "Peace of Flieder" was signed between Henrietta I, Balthazar, and the House of Borbone. The Peace of Flieder established the marriage between Henrietta and Balthazar, creating the "House of Rothingren-Traugott" and ended the hostility with the House of Borbone, along with several other families in Hulstria. The next year Henrietta and Balthazar gave birth to their first child, Rainer, the Crown Prince of Hulstria. The War of Hulstria Succession solidified Henrietta I as the Monarch and ended any opposing claims to the throne, especially after the Peace of Flieder; the succession war also secured Hulstrian power within the region. With the fact that the Monarchy successfully was able to main their territory and defeat an hostile army on their own land, Hulstria and the House of Rothingren proved their resiliency and ablity to maintain their Empire. Several towns and cities were badly damaged but through extensive economic reforms that were put into place following the war and during the Dual Monarchy helped revive war-torn areas. The War of Hulstrian Succession was also the founding stone for the House of Rothingren-Traugott who in later centuries would become arguably the most powerful royal House on the globe, encompassing several thrones. The War additionally put into place the system of a "Dual Monarchy", a form of government that would later be used in 25th century Hulstria. Dual Monarchy of Henrietta & Balthazar Following the Peace of Flieder the Duke of Traugott was coronated as the Emperor of Hulstria, taking the regnal name of Balthazar I of Hulstria. Shortly after this, Henrietta and Balthazar gave birth to their first son, Rainer, the first Crown Prince of Hulstria as a Rothingren-Traugott. During the first year of the Dual Monarchy, the Empress and Emperor exercised their own and equal powers; the two mainly worked together in the business of the Monarchy as well. The two were fairly conservative in manners of the State though Henrietta and Balthazar did implement vast reforms to strengthen the might of Hulstrian army and the economy. With the army Henrietta pushed for, and eventually got, the Imperial Forces to become more centralized; responsibility was still given to the Imperial Diet and the Defense Minister though the Monarch gained considerable powers over military decision making with her reforms. Other initiatives including growing the economy where the Dual Monarchy focused on balancing the Imperial budget and a mix of tax cuts and raises. The economic reforms created by the Dual Monarchy helped double the state revenue and gave room for the parliament and the Monarch to inact more initatives like improving roads, creating new trade routes, and constructing both civilian and military infrastructure; these reforms would help bring Hulstria out of the economic downturn created by the succession war. Henrietta was noted to as well created new reforms within the government; Henrietta, who was not an autocrat who acted alone in her dealings, was successful in turning the position of the Head of Government closer to the Monarchy while still keeping the position close to the parliament itself; the connection was meant to create an easier line of communication between the monarch and Her Majesty’s Imperial Government, a line that still exists today between the two positions. Balthazar was relucant to support this idea as he thought republicanists would try to gain the position in attempts to bash the sovereign since it became a larger position that is was before; Balthazar eventually however accepted the idea. Other advances in education and medicine, such as the construction of Kien General Hospital, one of the largest hospitals in the world, marked other reforms in the era of this Dual Monarchy. The Dual Monarchy would come to an erupt end after Balthazar I suddenly died in 1750; Henrietta was completely devastated, causing her to remain out of the public life for the remainder of her reign. She limited her duties to very formal events where sometimes she did not even attend those. Her son, Rainer, the Crown Prince, had to take up the responsibilities left behind by his mother, becoming a sort of co-regent without actually being one. In 1756 Henrietta I of Hulstria died after a bought with a fatal chill with her children at her beside at Fliederbrunn; her death ended the House of Rothingren and brought in it's successor house, the House of Rothingren-Traugott, to Hulstria. Her son, who already was performing a majority of her duties, became the new Emperor in the winter of 1756 at the very young age of 21. Reign of Rainer I Rainer was coronated as the first Rothingren-Traugott Emperor of Hulstria in the winter of 1756 shortly following the death of his mother Henrietta and took up the regnal name Rainer I of Hulstria (r.1756-1777); the new Emperor was very, very young at the time of his coronation, only 21 years of age. While Rainer was certainly brought up as the heir to the throne and as such was preped for one to take this position, some monarchists in the country were afraid of another succession war as they though opponents would look at the Emperor's age and take advantage of the Monarch. Rainer I of course attacked these claims as "foolish" and did not put too much stock into them, nor did many supporters of the new imperial House. =The Great Dark Period (2117-2193)= Following the assassination of Emperor Maximilian V by Gao-Showan extremists, Hulstria fell into anarchy. Historical documents and eyewitness accounts told that the regions of Budenlar and Hulstria were one of the first areas to face the onslaught of social breakdown and disorder; armed fighting among royalists and republicans were especially evident in major cities and urban environments. Tensions also existed between the Hulstrians and the Gao-Showans, whose tensions were already high before the assassination; fighting amongst these two cultures were aditionally evident and this fact contributed to the main reason of the collapse of order within the country. Rioting in the cities of Vielchen and Anderinch started to begin after a week of the assassination; in particular the "Veilchen Riot" was one of the bloodiest riots during the Great Dark Period and 1/4th of the city was burnt to the ground as a result. Sparks of armed conflict were apparent during the first months of the collapse of government though ceased after a year going into the Great Dark Period. The first years of the Great Dark Period was dramatic. The central government, weakened by the violence, was incapable of supporting the depth of civic infrastructure required to maintain libraries, public services and major educational institutions. Cities and merchants lost the economic benefits of safe conditions for trade and manufacture, and intellectual development suffered from the loss of a unified cultural and educational country. As it became unsafe to travel or carry goods over any distance, there was a collapse in trade and manufacture for export. The major industries that depended on long-distance trade vanished almost overnight in places like Kuratha. =Hulstrian Reclamation= In 2193 began serious talk about uniting the country that had fallen to anarchy 76 years prior; people were starting to get and wanted to get back to normalcy. The country still faced a large hurdle; Hulstria was still though broken into two main sects, the Hulstrians and the Gao-Showa. The Hulstrians still had suspicions and dislike of the Gao-Showa, blaming them for the assassination of Maximilian V, and the implosion of Hulstria. The Gao-Showa on the other hand, like the Hulstrians, held their own suspicions of the other group, claiming that if the Hulstrian Monarchy would come back to power, the new ruler would use his new role to punish the Gao-Showa for previous transgressions. They did however realize that the fighting had to end at somepoint and life could not continue if the nation remained under the cloud of darkness. The people, especially the newer generation wanted to live under a united country with an economy, and most importanly culture. Many people rallied behind the idea of returning the Emperor since Hulstria was stable and economically viable when it was under a constitutional monarchy. Others supported creating a Republic, gaining inspiration from the "Luthori Commonwealth" period from 2035 to 2085, which had Luthori under a form of republic. Monarchists fired back saying the Commonwealth was a failure and shortlived since Luthori eventually went back to the form of Monarchy under Harold VI (r.2085-2128). The republicans and monarchists finally agreed to meet in Kien to formally debate the creation of a united country. In 2195 for the first time since 2117, a special session of parliament convened with several new political parties attending. Here at this conference, dubbed the "Unification Congress", the parties that respectively represented monarchists, republicans, socialists, and independents, hammered out the details of the new formation of a united Hulstria. The Kaiserliche Hulsterreichische Partei, whose membership was made up mostly of members of the House of Strauss and other noble families, actively pushed for the restoration of the Rothingren-Traugott Monarchy; their ally, the Lutheran Nationalist Party, overly supported this as well. Socialist and Gao-Showa parties resented having a Hulstrian monarch or a re-united country with Hulstrians as the ruling class. The Monarchists opposed a re-united country with Gao-Showa as the ruling class since they were a minority. This roadblock in staled discussions for the next following year until a compromise was reached; the Monarchists accepted a new, hybrid culture called "Gishoti", a culture that would combine traditions from Hulstrian and Gao-Showa cultures that would be the national culture in the formation of a united nation, called Gishoto, that would be under a form of constitutional monarchy under Klaus Gustav, a descendant of Maximilian V, as the Holy Gishoto Emperor. The compromise was seen as a victory for both sides in a way since it resolved the conflict; Hulstrians accepted the deal since it restored the Monarchy and Gao-Showans accepted the deal because it didn't have one class dominate the nation. However there was still dissent, especially among some far-left Gao-Showa who saw the restoration of the Rothingren-Traugotts as a spit in the face to the revolutionaries that killed Maximilian V and to communist ideals they held dear. These dissenters would head to the underground of the political specturm of Gishoto and would not arise until the mid 2200s. Formation of Gishoto Empire & Klaus Gustav III Category:Greater Hulstria Category:History Category:Hulstrian Monarchy